When Jeff Rogers at Sparks Music suggested we feature Spiral Beach as our very first TRANSIT performance, we were genuinely thrilled. I’d seen them once before at a Sparks Music party and was impressed by their coiled grace and stage presence. Because we were really entering virgin territory with this whole project, a great deal depended on our first few bands ‘getting’ the concept and enduring our repeated requests for retakes until we got the angles and the sound just right. Well, Spiral Beach gave us all that and more.
Entirely charming, with a rich vocal presentation and a well-rehearsed set, we could tell this was a band with chops. Considering as well that they took a break from an intense studio recording session (for their latest album, “Ball”) just to sit for three long hours, in the mid-January cold, we will always owe a debt to this foursome.
For the shoot day, we were blessed with gorgeous sunlight throughout the afternoon, which more than made up for the -20 degree temperature outside. Our TTC driver and supervisor were perfectly accommodating and set a sedate pace along the tracks that ensured minimal starting-and-stopping. A key, we discovered, to keeping Josh, our cameraman, upright.
We embarked on our maiden voyage to the sounds of “Vagueries” and then “Orange”. Personally, I was thrilled during our sound check to hear the band break into an impromptu cover of the Violent Femmes’ “Waiting For the Bus”. An appropriate choice considering our circumstances.
Near the end of the session, we actually ground to a halt because someone had parked their car too close to the tracks, preventing the streetcar from moving. But because the light was so good, we decided to shoot anyway. In the end, this was the best performance of the day, so we kept it. - cb
